Fire Sign Midfielder Brendan King

CHICAGO, Ill. (Jan. 31, 2013) – The Chicago Fire Soccer Club announced Thursday that the club has signed midfielder Brendan King, pending the receipt of his International Transfer Certificate (ITC). Per league and team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed. King will join the Fire in the second leg of preseason in Ventura, Calif.

“Brendan is a local product that we have watched over the years,” said Fire President of Soccer Operations Javier Leon. “He is a talented, versatile player and it speaks highly of our player development system that we are able to add him to the first team roster.”

King, a 22-year-old midfielder from Naperville, Ill., joins the Men in Red after spending 2012 with Norwegian Division One side Alta IF where he appeared in seven matches and League of Ireland Premier Division side Bray Wanderers AFC where he made one appearance.

After a standout collegiate career at Notre Dame, where he scored six goals and added 14 assists in 81 games, King was drafted in the second round (27th overall) of the 2012 MLS SuperDraft by the Portland Timbers but elected to go abroad. A member of the U.S. U-17 squad for the 2007 U-17 World Cup, King, a Fire PDL product, was also a member of the Chicago Fire Super-20 team that won the North American Super-20 championship in 2008.